• KWS boss says the funds available are minimal but noted that the processing is done expeditiously.
• He said that surveillance is now more intense and it is a lot easier to anticipate action before it happens.
Image: KWS
The country has compensation claims worth Sh10 billion from human-wildlife conflict, the Kenya Wildlife Service has said.
Speaking to Citizen TV on Wednesday, Director-General John Waweru however said compensation after an animal kills or harms a person takes long because the budget provided for compensation is smaller than incidents recorded.
"We have claims worth Sh10 billion from death, crops being destroyed among others but so far about Sh2 billion has been paid from 2014," he said.
He said the funds available are minimal but noted that the processing is done expeditiously.
"When people are hurt we should be able to compensate them," he said.
Waweru said the incident should be report to warden, provide forms and the incident is recorded.
He said that surveillance is now more intense and it is a lot easier to anticipate action before it happens.
"The big challenge we have now is bush meat poaching which is consumed by communities and is not safe to eat directly and is a heritage," he said.
Today, March 3, is celebrated as World Wildlife day.
In a virtual conference, World Animal Protection launched an interactive map showing wildlife trade routes and the cruelty animals go through.
Featured prominently were- The Ball Pythons in West Africa, African Grey Parrots in Central Africa, The Traditional medicine markets in Benin and Lion bone trade in South Africa.
Wildlife Campaigns Manager at World Animal Protection Edith Kabesiime, said the interactive map shows wildlife trade routes globally and the dangers it has if not stopped.
The African continent is home to some of the world's most majestic and iconic wildlife.
"Sadly, it is also home to some of the world's most cruel, dangerous, and exploitative wildlife trading. Some of the activities are criminal, others are legally authorized, but all are cruel," she said.
Kabesiime said action is needed to end the global wildlife trade; to safeguard animal welfare, biodiversity, and to protect our health.
"We are urging people not to buy, own, or breed a wild animal for entertainment, for traditional Medicine or as an exotic pet. A life in captivity is a world away from a life in the wild," she said.
Every single day, thousands of wild animals are poached or farmed and sold into the global multi-billion-dollar wild animal trade with very little regard for their welfare.
They are deprived what their natural habitat would offer for free such as freedom, space, wild interaction, and diet. Wildlife trade is now so substantial that it represents one of the most prominent drivers of animal extinction risk globally.
The demand and exploitation of wild animals not only affects biodiversity, it also exposes us to disease and puts us all at risk.
Past occurrences have clearly demonstrated how the exploitation of wild animals’ primary caused the emergence and spread of zoonotic diseases like Covid-19, SARS, Ebola and MERS.